How to Grow Black Cherry
Solanum lycopersicum
Black Cherry tomatoes are beloved for their sweet flavor and compact size, making them ideal for containers and small gardens. Gardeners prize this warm-season variety for its reliable heat tolerance and moderate disease resistance.
📷 Wikipedia: TomatoStarting Black Cherry: indoors or direct sow?
🌾 Sow directly in the garden — Black Cherry is not usually started indoors.
Do not transplant seedlings until all danger of frost has passed and soil temperatures are warm enough for this heat-loving species.
Soil, care & harvest
Prepare loose, fertile soil with a pH between 6.2 and 6.8. As a warm-season crop, you must wait until after the last spring frost when the soil is fully warm to plant directly outdoors. Start seeds indoors only if your local climate requires an early head start, though direct sowing is often preferred once conditions are safe.
Space plants 18 to 24 inches apart and provide sturdy support or a trellis for the vines. Maintain consistent moisture with regular watering, as dry spells cause fruit cracking. Apply mulch around the base to retain water and feed the plant regularly during the growing season.
Watch for tomato hornworms, aphids, whiteflies, and spider mites; inspect leaves often and remove pests manually or use organic controls. Prevent late blight, early blight, fusarium wilt, and bacterial speck by ensuring good air circulation. Harvest ripe fruit approximately 64 days after transplanting when the color is deep red.
When to Plant Black Cherry
Planting windows vary by USDA hardiness zone. Look up yours by ZIP code.
| Zone | Start Indoors | Direct Sow | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 | May | — | September – August |
| Zone 2 | April – May | — | September |
| Zone 3 | April | — | August – October |
| Zone 4 | March – April | — | August – October |
| Zone 5 | March | — | August – October |
| Zone 6 | March | — | July – September |
| Zone 7 | February – March | — | July – September |
| Zone 8 | February | — | June – August |
| Zone 9 | January | — | May – July |
| Zone 10 | January | — | May – July |
| Zone 11 | January | — | April – June |
| Zone 12 | January | — | April – June |
| Zone 13 | January | — | April – June |
Companion Plants for Black Cherry
✓ Good companions
Repels aphids and whiteflies, may improve tomato flavor
Repels tomato hornworms and may improve tomato flavor
Loosen soil for tomato roots, don't compete for nutrients
Repel aphids and may improve tomato flavor and growth
Provides ground cover and doesn't compete with tomato roots
Repel nematodes and other soil pests, attract beneficial insects
Act as trap crop for aphids and cucumber beetles
Attracts beneficial insects and may improve tomato growth
✗ Keep away from
Produces juglone which is toxic to tomatoes and causes wilting
Compete for nutrients and may stunt tomato growth
Both attract corn earworms and compete for nutrients
Inhibits growth of tomatoes through allelopathic compounds
Nutrition Facts
Per 100g serving (USDA FoodData Central)
